Monica Wemitt's Memories of the 1995 Revival of Hello, Dolly!
Monica Wemitt has actually done several productions of Dolly! over
the years, but the one we are going to focus on is Carol Channing’s last
Broadway revival in 1995. It also happens to be the production in which Monica
made her Broadway debut...as Ernestina Money (and Carol’s standby). It was a very exciting time for Monica.
She
remembers standing on stage and thinking, “Oh my God! All my dreams have come
true. “ Her mom was in the house and her best friend, Dan LoBuono, was standing
right behind Carol.
She was standing there with Carol and it was “just
amazing”.
Monica’s agent had sent her in for it and she was hoping
that it would come to fruition. Lee Roy
Reams was very instrumental in terms of getting Monica cast. Carol was looking
for someone very tall, very “lanky”, and very “character-y” looking. Monica
says she was an “over weight pretty woman”.
Lee Roy liked Monica’s reading and felt she could fit the bill. Lee Roy
pretty much cast the show although Carol had the final say. Lee Roy has a
really good eye for casting. He cast the whole show beautifully.
The tour started in 1994, opened at the Lunt-Fontaine
Theater on October 19th, 1995 and closed on January 28th,
1996 (116 performances). Monica has never seen a production of Dolly! outside of those that she has
appeared in. She feels that this was
probably one of the best things she has done in her career. She said it was a
magical company. She says it wasn’t all
hearts and flowers. When you work with a company, it becomes a family. There
are ebbs and flows as there are in any family. For the most part, no gossip
here, everyone got along. There is
nothing that she didn’t like about this production. The high point is that she
made her debut. She was in her forties.
Jay Garner, Carol, Florence Lacey |
Early in the run of the tour, one night Carol “went up” on
her lines. It was in her first monologue at the top of the show. Monica is
standing right next to her. Monica, of course, knew them having been part of
this scene for the past six weeks. She went completely blank. Monica fed Carol
a cue line. Carol said, “Yesss, Thank you very much Ernestina”, and went on
with the monologue. Monica’s first thought was, “I’m screwed. I just lost my
job.” During intermission, Monica was called to Carol’s dressing room. She is
shaking. She knocks on Carol’s dressing room door and timidly says, “Yes,
Carol?” She is thinking “How fast can I get out of my dressing room without the
ultimate humiliation?” Carol said, “I
just want to thank you for helping me out. Now, you can go.” Monica really
thought she was going to be fired!
Monica’s overall thoughts on Carol Channing is that she is a
totally generous human being. She was so great to this company on the road and
Monica said she learned so much from her. She learned about pleasing the
audience. “It’s not about ‘you’. It’s about making sure that THEY have a good
time.” They don’t NEED to go to the theater. They need to pay their bills. They need to go to work. It has always been very important to Carol to
give her audiences what they are paying for. “A night of entertainment. Some
sort of escape from the doldrums of the ‘every day’.”
The late Jay Garner, who played Horace Vandergelder, was
according to Monica, “the funniest man who ever walked the face of the earth.
He was a curmudgeon, but sweet and a nice, nice man.” She said there just isn’t enough that she
could say about him. Of course, they spent a lot of time alone together in that
booth during the Harmonia Garden scene. He kept her entertained by regaling her
with silly little stories about his day, card games he had played, any nonsense
that came to him.
As the guys would come around to peek behind the curtains, he
would, in character, shoo them away.
Monica’s opening night on Broadway was an amazing
experience. She had three best friends in the audience. Paul Sportelli, who is
now the musical director of the Shaw Festival, David O’Brien, who is now the
production stage manager of the tour of Wicked,
Ron Lord who was the musical director for the Carousel Dinner Theater at
the time. Her mom, once again, was there, as well. She was making her Broadway
debut with all these people she loves so much. Her friend, Dan, was also making
his Broadway debut the same night. They looked across at each other and they
each had a single tear trickling down their cheeks. So many in that company
were making their debuts that night. Monica says you can’t even imagine what
that felt like and the ovations of the audience that night. When Carol made her
first entrance, Monica says she has never felt that kind of energy ever again
in the theater. She still gets goosebumps thinking about it.
Lee Roy Reams |
Lee Roy Reams, who directed this production knows what he
wants and gets what he wants, according to Monica. “You never feel incompetent
with him.” He brings out the best and he does it with so much humor. He also
has a trunk load of stories. “I have no idea how old that man is but, by God,
he is like the energizer bunny. He just keeps going.” He has this amazing
energy and he has a hundred projects going on all the time! Those of us who are
lucky to get his Christmas letters know what I’m talking about.
Lee Roy can be summed up in “Great warmth, great humor, and
great love.”
He knew what Carol wanted and that’s exactly what was
delivered. Once the show opened, it was frozen.
Monica says her favorite memory of the show is the
friendships she created. She is still friends with many from that company till
this day. Michael DeVries who played Cornelius remains a good friend. He
brought such an innocent charm to Cornelius. He is a well versed, well educated
man, but beautifully “innocent”. His soul is beautiful and he brought that to
his role. He never “played at” being bowled over by the beauty of Mrs. Molloy.
He embodied it. There was no pretense about it at all.
Kim Montgomery, who understudied Florence Lacey as Irene
Molloy, is also a good friend.
The one thing that Monica took from this show that she has
carried throughout her career is that no matter how “silly” a show may feel or
seem on the surface, they all have a point to them. There is a reason for
being. It is the actor’s job to make it real to the audiences, to make a song a
monologue rather than a song. It is the job of the actor to convey the intent
of the creators.
Monica’s thoughts on Jerry Herman: A lovely man. He invited
the entire company over to his house for lunch. They were all like children in
a museum running all over the place. At some point someone asked to use the
bathroom. He instructed them to go down the hall. Since someone was already in
there, he told them to go upstairs through his bedroom to his bathroom. The
person, upon coming back downstairs, said on the QT to someone, “You should see
his bedroom! It’s beautiful.” Jerry
overheard this person and said, “Everyone upstairs!” Everyone was upstairs in
his bedroom and on his bed. “It was one of the funniest things I ever saw. I
love this man so much. He was such a kid. You would think that he would be so
hoity toity with the successes he has had. He is so down to earth. A great
great man.”
In most shows, accidents happen. Such is the case, as well,
with this company. One night, Michael Devries and Cory English in the Hay and
Feed Store were coming out of the cellar with “Out there, there’s a world
outside of Yonkers”, he tweaked his neck and was out of the show for a while.
Jim Madden, his understudy, went on for a while and did a wonderful job. That
happened on the road, but Michael was able to return to the show and bring his
Cornelius to Broadway. Dan LoBuono, one of the “waiters” rolled his ankle and
was out of the show for a few weeks.
The cast album was recorded in Prince’s studio in
Minneapolis. Monica said when she heard those musicians play that score in the
confines of that space, she burst into tears.
The biggest change Monica has seen since she opened on
Broadway in 1995 is the expense of seeing a show now. She appreciates the
unions but it is so expensive to put on a show now. Tours are not the same.
It’s now half-Equity and half-non-union.
As joyous as opening night was, closing night was equally
sad. No body wanted it to close. Tarzan was already scheduled to come into the
Lunt-Fontaine Theater. They were still selling out. It is the nature of the
business.
Now, about Carol’s curtain speech. Monica hated it!
Especially on those two show days! Everyone is SO TIRED and they had to stand
there and smile while they waited for her to end that speech. The audiences
loved it, however. Monica thought, “just grin and bear it”!
Sometimes Broadway dreams do come true. Fresh from the obscurity of living in the small farming community of Grove, Oklahoma, Ronald Young, at 22, is catapulted onto New York City's "Great White Way"... BROADWAY. After arriving in Manhattan on a Friday, he auditions for his first Broadway show on Monday. Bingo! After three call back auditions he snags his first dancing role in the soon to be mega hit "HELLO, DOLLY!" directed and choreographed by Gower Champion and starring Carol Channing. Armed with three music degrees and lots of enthusiasm he embarks on his career on Broadway.
His resume includes working with some of the legends of the theater: Ethel Merman, Shirley Booth, Angela Lansbury, Tommy Tune, Bernadette Peters, Joel Gray, Chita Rivera, Sandy Duncan, Georgia Engel and many others. He appeared in a host of shows: "MAME," "GEORGE M!" "THE BOY FRIEND," "MY ONE AND ONLY," "A CHORUS LINE" and the films "HAIR" and "ANNIE."
"THE ONLY BOY WHO DANCED" is a series of compelling, riveting stories about Ronald Young's personal quest to make it on Broadway. If you or a friend have hidden aspirations to make it on the New York theatrical scene, you will enjoy his tips and suggestions on how to break through this tough barrier.
Richard Skipper and Ronald Young are sitting down for an exploration of Ronald's incredible career in show business. Email Richard at Richard@RichardSkipper.com for more info
Please do what YOU can to be more aware that words and actions DO HURT...but they can also heal and help!
TILL TOMORROW...HERE'S TO AN ARTS FILLED DAY
This Blog is dedicated to ALL THE DOLLYS and ANYONE who has EVER had a connection with ANY of them on ANY Level!
Thank
you Monica for the gifts you have given and continue to give
to the world! I am looking forward to sharing your memories with the world! Just you wait!!
With grateful XOXOXs ,
I want this to be a definitive account of Hello, Dolly!
If any of you reading this have appeared in any production of Dolly, I'm interested in speaking with you!
Do you have any pics? If you have anything to add or share, please contact me at Richard@RichardSkipper.com.
NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY!
Do you have any pics? If you have anything to add or share, please contact me at Richard@RichardSkipper.com.
NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY!
June 29
7-9pm
7-9pm
BARNES AND NOBLE UPPER EAST SIDE, 150 East 86th Street
RICHARD SKIPPER CELEBRATES Ronald Young
In his new memoir, "The Only Boy Who Danced: A Journey
from Oklahoma to Broadway and Beyond", Ronald Young details an eventful
life in the theater. The Only Boy Who Danced: A Journey from Oklahoma to Broadway
and Beyond.
Sometimes Broadway dreams do come true. Fresh from the obscurity of living in the small farming community of Grove, Oklahoma, Ronald Young, at 22, is catapulted onto New York City's "Great White Way"... BROADWAY. After arriving in Manhattan on a Friday, he auditions for his first Broadway show on Monday. Bingo! After three call back auditions he snags his first dancing role in the soon to be mega hit "HELLO, DOLLY!" directed and choreographed by Gower Champion and starring Carol Channing. Armed with three music degrees and lots of enthusiasm he embarks on his career on Broadway.
His resume includes working with some of the legends of the theater: Ethel Merman, Shirley Booth, Angela Lansbury, Tommy Tune, Bernadette Peters, Joel Gray, Chita Rivera, Sandy Duncan, Georgia Engel and many others. He appeared in a host of shows: "MAME," "GEORGE M!" "THE BOY FRIEND," "MY ONE AND ONLY," "A CHORUS LINE" and the films "HAIR" and "ANNIE."
"THE ONLY BOY WHO DANCED" is a series of compelling, riveting stories about Ronald Young's personal quest to make it on Broadway. If you or a friend have hidden aspirations to make it on the New York theatrical scene, you will enjoy his tips and suggestions on how to break through this tough barrier.
Richard Skipper and Ronald Young are sitting down for an exploration of Ronald's incredible career in show business. Email Richard at Richard@RichardSkipper.com for more info
Please do what YOU can to be more aware that words and actions DO HURT...but they can also heal and help!
M blog tomorrow will be..Celebrity "Obsessions"
Thank you, to all the mentioned in this blog!
Thank you, to all the mentioned in this blog!
Here's to an INCREDIBLE tomorrow for ALL...with NO challenges!
Please contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING and HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS
TILL TOMORROW...HERE'S TO AN ARTS FILLED DAY
Richard Skipper, Richard@RichardSkipper.com
This Blog is dedicated to ALL THE DOLLYS and ANYONE who has EVER had a connection with ANY of them on ANY Level!
What a fabulous blog post this is, Richard! I can not WAIT to read your book!
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